Steamboat Opens First Colorado Superpipe

December 06, 2002

Ranked #4 Park in North America by SKI Magazine

Ranked #7 Pipe in North America by TransWorld Snowboarding

STEAMBOAT SPRINGS, Colorado — The Steamboat Ski Area will open the Mavericks Superpipe-the longest on the continent–on Saturday, December 7, 2002, the earliest the pipe has opened at the resort. Mavericks becomes the first superpipe in Colorado to open for the 2002/03 season.

“Mavericks Superpipe premiered last year to rave reviews shooting Steamboat into the elite level in the freeriding arena,” said Andy Wirth, vice president of marketing for the Steamboat Ski & Resort Corporation. “This year, Steamboat’s operations crews have done an outstanding job, allowing us to open Mavericks the earliest ever in resort history and all indications point towards a very successful second season.”

Steamboat put the super in superpipe this past winter with the debut of the Mavericks Superpipe, with 16-foot walls, 50 feet wide, 17-foot transition and 670 feet in total length including a new re-designed quarterpipe kicker (50 foot walls and 17 feet high) at the end. Located in Bashor Bowl, Mavericks is serviced by its own lift and maintained at a high level with 14 volunteers and two full-time groomers utilizing the Bombardier HPG-17 pipe grinder regularly.

“Mavericks and the Bashor Terrain Park provide some of the most exciting snowboarding and freeskiing terrain in the United States,” said John Asta, manager of operations of Mavericks and the Terrain Park. “We’ve worked hard over the last few years to design an area that continues to be innovative, challenging and set up with terrain suitable for all freeriding ability levels. The ultimate goal of our Terrain Park crew is to make the best park and pipe in Colorado.”

This year, Steamboat adds a state-of-the-art outdoor sound system and expands the Terrain Park to nearly twelve acres. The additional terrain will allow room for seven new professionally designed rails, a new mailbox, and beginner rails supplementing last year’s jumps, rails, and Mini-Mav, a 200 foot long beginner mini-pipe. In addition, Steamboat’s Snowboarding School will feature a Freestyle Park & Pipe Clinic where riders, level 5-6, receive coaching on proper technique, procedures and tricks in a half-day terrain park clinic. Steamboat will add a third park this year with the Rider X Course, a boardercross, adjacent to Buddy’s Run.

Mavericks, which gained national attention last season, was recently ranked 7th among pipes and 7th overall in TransWorld Snowboarding Magazine’s 2002 resort guide. SKI Magazine rated Steamboat’s Bashor Terrain Park, which includes Mavericks-Superpipe, as the fourth best park in North America in 2002.

Mavericks-Superpipe is the first section of the Bashor Terrain Park to open, with the remainder of the park expected to be open by the Christmas Holiday. Steamboat promotes the Smart Style System in its pipe and parks. Stay tuned to www.steamboat.com for updates on Mavericks and its events.